University of Lisboa Faculty of Sciences Animal Biology ...was home and I consider Boult-aux-Bois my...

University of Lisboa

Faculty of Sciences

Animal Biology Department

The effect of habitat fragmentation in

the diet of pine marten

Duarte Henrique Marques Mestre

Mestrado em Biologia da Conservação

2012

[THE EFFECT OF HABITAT FRAGMENTATION ON THE DIET OF PINE MARTEN] March of 2012

ii

University of Lisboa

Faculty of Sciences

Animal Biology Department

The effect of habitat fragmentation in

the diet of pine marten

Duarte Henrique Marques Mestre

Mestrado em Biologia da Conservação

Dissertation oriented by Prof. Dra. Marie Lazarine-Poulle

(Director of 2C2A-CERFE) and by Prof. Dra. Margarida Santos-Reis

(DBA/CBA - FCUL)

2012


iii

Acknowledgements

―Adapt or perish, now as ever, is nature's inexorable imperative.

H. G. Wells‖

First of all I just would like to say that this whole experience was wonderful and

I am indebted to all that contributed to it. I really hope that this work will have a role in

conservation of this species. This study opened my eyes to the many problems

biologists have on the field regarding the acceptance of people who don’t understand

why there are a bunch of (crazy) people collecting scats of the ground of a species that

they hunt and don’t really care about. To all of the people that allowed me to go on the

field for hours and hours of collecting scats a most sincere thank you.

I, of course, would like to thanks my parents for providing me the opportunity

for going on Erasmus by car because without them I would not be able to enjoy this

once-in-a-lifetime chance. To my Professor Francisco Petrucci-Fonseca I also thank for

his invaluable help choosing the university which I ended up going to and for the long

hours of laughs about our common passion, football. Particular thanks are due to my

supervisors Marie Lazarine-Poulle, Marina Mergey and Margarida Santos-Reis. To

Marie Lazarine for always being there for me and for her priceless help in my stay in

France. You were indeed the supervisor that everybody would like to have and I will

always be thankful. Big thanks also for Marina for putting up with my incessant

questions, for going with me to the field collecting the scats and for all the time

laughing and sharing for the duration of time there. To professor Santos-Reis a most

sincere thank you for all the knowledge regarding mammals you have given me.

Without it I could never have done this dissertation. Your advices regarding the

contents of this work improved by far the quality of this document. Thank you all for

putting your confidence in me, providing support and making this a most enjoyable

experience.

Thanks are also in order for Professor Henrique Cabral for helping with a

statistical problem I had and by showing that I could count on him for help and to


iv

professor Rui Rebelo for helping throughout the whole process of writing this

document.

To all the people in the CERFE and in France I thank you will all my heart. You

all were the most amazing people someone could ever wish for. You made me feel like I

was home and I consider Boult-aux-Bois my second home because of you. To Rémi

Helder a most sincere thank you for the classification of woodland you did. It was a

most valuable contribution to my dissertation. Thomas, Clara, Carole Bodin, Carole

Brendel, Marina and Marie Amélie I appreciate all you have done for me I wish you all

a happy life. To everybody else that made me laugh you all know you are very

important to me.

I could not have done this without the love and support of my family: my parents

Cila and José, my cousin Ana, my aunt Maria Helena, uncle Octávio and my

grandparents João and Conceição and my ―cousin‖ Pedro.

Last but not least, to my all my friends from Portugal for reminding me every

day that I was working with animal droppings (making fun of me) and for your support

in me going on Erasmus. A very special thanks to José Ricardo, my ―brother‖,

Francisco Moreira, Gonçalo Rodrigues, Sónia Tomás, João Fernandes, Maria Estudante,

João Sobrinho, Cátia Vanessa, Tomé Matos and everyone else for being there for me.

May we never forget each other and remain good friends for our whole lives.


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Abstract

The european pine marten Martes martes (Linnaeus 1758) is a member of the

Mustelidae family, comprising such members as weasels, stoats, polecats, mink, marten,

fishers, wolverines, otters, badgers and others. This family of carnivores has a high

influence in the food chain of many habitats and its protection depends on finding a

compromise on the degree of human actions in the environment.

With the increase of forest fragmentation all around the globe in the last century,

it becomes essential to understand the role played by habitat fragmentation in forest-

type habitats. This project regards the possible differences between the diet of

European marten (Martes martes) in a fragmented and a non-fragmented area in the

northeast of France, specifically in the Ardennes region. This work’s objectives are: (i)

to understand the results obtained within the general theme of forest management and

conservation of pine marten; (ii) to compare pine marten diet in a fragmented and a non-

fragmented area, regarding one of the pine marten’s basic resource (rodents); (iii) To

speculate about resource availability, regarding the results.

To accomplish the objectives of we performed transects in two different kinds of

habitat to retrieve pine marten droppings. After a genetic analysis of the droppings, the

eating habits of the species were studied through the verification of the content of the

droppings and related to the variation of types of prey on both sites.

The results we obtained allow us to conclude that the pine marten explores other

trophic resources in fragmented areas such as the consumption of seeds and that it goes

outside of its preferred habitat to feed therefore adapting to an high degree of habitat

fragmentation.

Keywords: pine marten; habitat fragmentation; diet; conservation


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Resumo

.

Salvar a biodiversidade teve, nas últimas décadas, uma atenção especial nos

níveis mais baixos da biodiversidade. Menos atenção tem sido dada à identificação dos

processos ambientais que ameaçam a biodiversidade, e como estes são susceptíveis de

se alterarem num futuro próximo (Debinski e Holt, 2000).

A perda e fragmentação de habitat, em termos de conservação da biodiversidade,

está entre as principais preocupações ambientais actualmente, mas os mecanismos

subjacentes a fenómeno são difíceis de identificar e compreender, tal como os

respectivos impactos. Esta importância relativamente a estes fenómenos prende-se pelo

efeito negativo proveniente dos mesmos. Existem vários exemplos desses efeitos como

um aumento no índice da mortalidade de indivíduos que se deslocam entre zonas de

habitat e uma redução do tamanho de populações locais originando uma maior

vulnerabilidade à extinção (Fahrig e Merriam, 1994).

O conhecimento profundo dos factores prejudiciais para a biodiversidade deve

ser o componente mais importante do planeamento de conservação e, como tal, a falta

desse mesmo conhecimento, especialmente no que toca à relação entre os efeitos da

fragmentação de habitats sobre as populações de mamíferos no topo da cadeia

alimentar, provoca um entrave à conservação das espécies.

A espécie estudada, a marta (Martes martes) é um carnívoro de médio porte cuja

dieta é predominantemente carnívora (Jedrzejewski et al 1993, Baltrûnaitë 2002, Caryl

2008). Na região escandinava, a marta é frequentemente categorizada como uma

espécie especialista, porque está dependente de manchas de floresta antiga com

possíveis locais de descanso e de nidificação, a fim de estar protegida contra

predadores.

Esta espécie está distribuída por toda a França e está, supostamente, regredindo

ao longo dos séculos como resultado de envenenamento por armadilhas e fragmentação

florestal (Maurin, 1992).


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Alguns tópicos de ecologia da marta como dieta (Nyholm 1970, Garzon et al.

1980, Reig e Jedrzejewski 1988, Jedrzejewski et al. 1993, Clevenger 1993, Pulliainen &

Ollinmaki 1996, Helldin 2000), área vital (Zalewski et. al. 1995, Caryl 2008) e

preferências de habitat (Brainerd e Rolstad 2002) foram dissecados ao longo dos anos,

mas a nossa percepção dos elementos que limitam a densidade e distribuição da marta

europeia permanecem em grande parte inexplicados (Helldin 1998).

O papel ecológico preenchido pela espécie é muito importante e é bastante

diversificado. É principalmente um predador, mas é também um necrófago e

complementa sua dieta com material vegetal, portanto, pode ser classificada como

omnívora (Marchesi e Mermod 1989).

A marta foi escolhida como modelo de estudo devido ao impacto que a espécie

tem nos vários degraus da cadeia trófica e também devido à sua matriz de necessidades

ecológicas. Outras influências que levaram a esta escolha foram as de que esta era uma

espécie pertencente a um projecto de conservação decorrendo na região e que este

estudo nos pode mostrar como a população local de marta subsiste contra uma alta

percentagem de fragmentação do seu habitat.

Satisfazer as necessidades alimentares de cada espécie é uma das questões

fundamentais da ecologia. Isso ocorre porque o alimento é o principal agente regulador

das populações e, portanto, ao estudar a disponibilidade de recursos alimentares e como

as espécies as aproveitam, podemos usar essas informações para ajudar a preservar a

espécie.

Neste trabalho, os nossos objectivos foram os de identificar possíveis diferenças

na alimentação da marta variando de uma zona de floresta contínua para uma com

elevado grau de fragmentação e de integrar os resultados obtidos no espectro de

informações sobre a ecologia e conservação da marta.

Os nossos dois locais de estudo, uma área de floresta fragmentada e outra de

floresta contínua, foram assim divididos em forma de grelha e em cada quadrado foi

realizado um transecto de 2 km através de zonas de floresta, para a recolha de dejectos.


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As zonas de floresta foram definidas através do programa ArcView 3.2 por um

especialista com conhecimento do terreno.

Os dejectos recolhidos foram então enviados para o laboratório na Universidade

de Lyon para identificação das espécies utilizando marcadores moleculares.

Os dejectos que foram identificados positivamente como marta foram depois

analisados em laboratório de forma a conhecer a dieta da espécie. Os elementos que

encontrámos foram categorizados em cinco classes de acordo com os vestígios

encontrados: "Roedores", "Aves", "Sementes", "Insectos" e "Outros mamíferos". A

classe ―Outros mamíferos‖ incluiu carcaças e animais insectívoros. Os resultados foram

expressos em termos de ocorrência relativa dividindo-se o número de dejectos em que a

presa ocorreu com o número total de dejectos analisados.

As diferentes classes de alimento foram classificadas quanto à sua importância

no espectro de alimentos.

A classe "Sementes" apenas estava presente no local de estudo com floresta

contínua com uma classificação de "uso constante", devido à sua percentagem de

ocorrência (11%) e foi a diferença mais notável entre os dois locais de amostragem.

Foram identificadas duas espécies nesta categoria: Rosa canina L. e Prunus avium, duas

espécies não florestais.

A classe ―Roedores‖ foi a mais representada tendo uma percentagem de

ocorrência total de perto de 50% em ambas as áreas enquanto a classe ―Aves‖ também

ela estava bem representada na dieta com valores a rondar os 30%. Ambas as classes

são consideradas recursos básicos na dieta da marta.

As restantes classes, ―Insectos‖ e ―Outros mamíferos‖, representaram cerca de

11 e 2 % respectivamente, tendo esta última apenas elementos encontrados no local de

estudo com floresta contínua.

Com os dados obtidos testámos a hipótese nula das dietas não serem diferentes

e, não tendo rejeitado essa hipótese, fomos verificar se o mesmo acontecia relativamente

à classe ―Roedores‖ tendo obtido o mesmo resultado de não-rejeição da hipótese em

teste. Face a estes resultados fomos então verificar se a proporção de "Roedores" é


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homogénea, ou seja, se cada recurso desta classe é explorado de igual forma onde o

resultado foi altamente significativo.

Para complementar os resultados anteriores decidimos avaliar a amplitude da

exploração de recursos calculando o índice de Shannon-Wiener (Krebs 1999) de

amplitude de nicho trófico (H ') e recorrer a uma comparação estatística da amplitude

ambos os nichos. O teste t resultante não rejeitou a hipótese nula de nichos não

diferentes.

Finalmente usamos o índice de Pianka (Pianka 1973 em Krebs 1999) para ver

como ambos os nichos se sobrepõem. O resultado obtido foi uma sobreposição quase

total (0,97) dos mesmos.

Finalmente, a fim de adquirir uma melhor compreensão sobre os hábitos

alimentares da marta, foram usados os dados adquiridos relativamente ao local de

floresta fragmentada. Nessa análise separaram-se os elementos da classe ―Roedores‖ em

2 grupos usando as suas preferências de habitat como critério de escolha.

Comparou-se então os dois grupos usando a percentagem de habitat

correspondente a cada grupo para o cálculo no número de elementos que se esperaria ter

encontrado se o uso de habitat fosse igual. O teste revelou que a marta mostra

preferência por zonas de floresta mas que explora habitats não florestais em busca de

presas.

Como tal as principais conclusões deste estudo são de que a marta é um animal

que se adapta bem a ambientes altamente fragmentados, saindo do seu habitat

preferencial para explorar os recursos tróficos existentes noutros habitats.

Outra conclusão que os dados nos permitem retirar é de que os elementos da

classe ―Sementes‖ são usados como complemento da dieta da marta em habitats

fragmentados levando a uma especulação de que os recursos básicos da sua dieta não

são suficientes para as suas necessidades ecológicas.

As limitações deste trabalho prenderam-se pela proporção de dejectos

encontrada em ambos os locais (5 para 1 a favor do local com fragmentação florestal)

levando a uma comparação dieta muito menos robusta do que a que poderia ter sido

feita. Outra limitação foi o facto de não termos procedido à identificação de espécies de


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aves como foi feito noutros trabalhos que poderia dar-nos indicações relativamente a

possíveis efeitos da fragmentação de habitat neste recurso essencial na dieta da marta.

Finalmente o número de dejectos analisados poderia ter sido maior para prevenir a

possível ausência de certas presas do espectro alimentar analisado e para melhorar a

nossa análise em relação à sua robustez.

Uma medida necessária para aumentar o nosso conhecimento sobre o tema é o

de se realizar um estudo sobre o uso da paisagem por martas em um habitat altamente

fragmentado, a fim de maximizar os esforços de conservação. Seria também importante

caracterizar um espectro elevado de fragmentos florestais (diferentes tamanhos, formas,

espécies vegetais) no que toca aos dois factores mais importantes na ecologia da marta:

a existência de locais de descanso e nidificação e a disponibilidade de presas. O

conjunto de informações obtido nestes estudos seria essencial para a conservação da

espécie.

Palavras-chave: marta; fragmentação de habitat; dieta; conservação.


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Index

1. Introduction……………………………………………....1

2. Materials and methods……………………………….......8

2.1 Study site……………………………………………………………………….8

2.2 Field sampling…………………………………………………………………..9

2.3 Diet analysis……………………………………………………...…………….10

2.4 Diet comparison………………………………………………………………..11

2.5 Resource exploration…………………………………………………………...12

3. Results……………………………………………………14

3.1 Diet analysis……………………………………………………………………14

3.2 Diets comparison……………………………………………………………….16

3.3 Resource exploration…………………………………………………………...19


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4. Discussion………………………………………………...20

5. Bibliography…………………………………………..…26


Página 1

Introduction

The current landscape scenario

The existing setting regarding landscape and especially forest landscape in

Europe is mostly the result of thousands of years of occupation and land use by human

societies. The main driving force of these changes is the development of agricultural

and forestry practices (Saunders et al. 1991). Thus, the percentage of crop area

worldwide has increased 466% between 1700 and 1980, reaching 120 million km2 of

land converted to crops (Saunders et al. 1991). However, the majority of farmland was

converted from forests. In the early 90’s the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)

estimated a consumption of 9 million hectares of forest per year and the value was

increasing rapidly, suggesting that the world forest would be in danger.

The loss and fragmentation of habitat is a threat to biodiversity recognized by all

(Foley et al. 2005) and is possibly one of the drivers of the sixth mass extinction

(Wilcox and Murphy 1985). As such, in terms of biodiversity conservation, habitat

destruction is among the top environmental concerns today. The literature on this

subject is vast, and this topic has already been dissected repeatedly. Unfortunately the

mechanisms underlying this effect are tricky to identify and understand, and is not

always easy to clearly see the consequences of it on species (Debinski and Holt, 2000).

In these circumstances it is appropriate to use strict definitions and techniques

appropriate to determine such effect. There are some examples of that effect such as,

according to BirdLife International, around 85% of threatened bird species and 86% of

threatened mammal species are at risk due to habitat loss and degradation (in Baillie, et

al. 2004). Likewise, a third of amphibian species is at risk of extinction, mainly due to

habitat loss and fragmentation (Cushman, 2006).

In terms of biodiversity conservation, forest fragmentation is within the key

environmental concerns (Lacy 1987, Haila 2002, Fazey et al., 2005). However, even

though the literature on this subject is increasing (Fahrig 2003), the core mechanisms

are not yet fully understood and the consequences are not fully identified (Bowne and

Bowers 2004).


Página 2

Debinksi and Holt (2000) suggest that several issues remain unresolved,

including how the forest fragmentation affects dispersal and the daily movements of

individuals, and how does that affect the genetic diversity of neutral alleles and traits

linked to reproductive success. However, it is not always easy to demonstrate the effect

of habitat fragmentation on species (Debinski and Holt, 2000).

Not only habitat loss but also fragmentation are generally thought to have

negative effect on species perseverance (Trzcinski et. al., 1999, Fahrig and Merriam

1994). This is explained by the negative effect of fragmentation that comprises of an

increase to the mortality of individuals travelling among patches and a reduction of the

site’s population size ensuing in increased vulnerability to extinction (Fahrig and

Merriam 1994).

The lack of knowledge that exists about the relation between the effects of

habitat fragmentation on populations of mammals in the top of the food chain, with the

exception of studies regarding road construction (Kinnaird et. al. 2003) represents a

major flaw in the outlook of population conservation. Therefore thorough knowledge of

harmful factors to biodiversity should be the most important component of conservation

planning for two major reasons. For one, conservation scheduling must function within

the constraints of present and possible future land use alterations because altered land

usually has low conservation worth, and areas with a higher probability of being altered

are challenging for incorporating in reserve networks. And second, because the current

and predicted magnitude of land transformation has repercussions for defining objective

targets and for devising conservation plans (Margules and Pressey, 2000; Myers et al.,

2000; Pressey and Cowling, 2001). Because conservation resources are scarce, there is

an urgent need for identifying priorities for conservation actions.

The pine marten Martes martes L. 1758

In the world, the genus Martes is constituted by eight species, and four of these

species share the same subgenera as the pine marten: the stone marten Martes foina, the

sable Martes zibellina, the Japanese marten M. melampus, and the American marten M.

americana (Anderson 1970 in Caryl 2008). These five Martes species share many


Página 3

morphological and ecological similarities and are found in habitats throughout the

northern continents of the world (holarctic region) (Anderson 1970 in Caryl 2008).

The European pine marten is a medium-sized carnivore, with an elongate body,

and has about the size and proportions of a large domestic cat. His head and body length

is 44-58 cm and tail length is 15-29 cm. There is a clear sexual dimorphism with males

weighing between 12 and 30% more than the females. The fur is a rich brown coat that

is thick and silky in the winter and short and coarse in the summer. The coloration

includes an irregular, creamy-orange throat patch, a grayish tint on the belly, and

darkening on the paws. The tail is long and bushy and the ears are relatively large and

triangular (Schwanz 2000). Pine martens have a predominantly carnivorous diet,

consuming voles, mice, squirrels, rabbits, birds, and amphibians (Jedrzejewski et al.

1993, Baltrûnaitë 2002, Caryl 2008) but in some regions – Scotland – it has been

recorded to include crabs, echinoderms, and barnacles (Gurnell et al. 1994). In the

Scandinavian region, the pine marten is frequently categorized as a habitat specialist,

because it is a species dependent on patches of old forest with possible denning and

resting sites and that avoids open areas in order to be protected from predators, avoiding

open areas such as agricultural fields. Other reasons for its dependence are the

importance of thermal isolation and prey availability present in this type of habitat

(Buskirk and Powell 1994, Brainerd 1990, Brainerd 2002). This occurs because it needs

resting and denning sites and such needs are easier to have to fulfill on old growth

forests where a greater presence of arboreal cavities exists (Zalewski 1997).

The pine marten is native to most of Europe, living in a diverse range of

biotopes between the north of Europe (Finland, Scandinavia) and the south (Spain,

Portugal),including the British islands and from Ireland and Great Britain to Iraq and

Iran (Figure 1) (Proulx et al. 2004). The species is listed under Appendix III of the Bern

Convention (Harris et al. 1995) although it can be hunted or trapped due the highly

prized pelts on various European countries such as France, Germany and Sweden where

there are large forested areas and marten populations are seen as stable (Proulx et al.

2004). There are a few countries where the marten is entirely protected due to the fact

that its status is unknown or is believed to be vulnerable or threatened (Proulx et al.

2004).


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In France the population size is not known. This species is distributed

throughout the whole country and is supposedly regressing constantly over the centuries

as a result of trapping, poisoning and forest fragmentation (Maurin, 1992).

But the primary reason for this decline is mainly for it being considered, by the

Environment Ministry, ―harmful to humans‖ (Nuisibles). During a brief hiatus between

March of 2002, where it was removed of the list, and November of the same year the

species was fully protected. But due to an uprising in the hunting community the species

returned to the list and it can be hunted and trapped during the hunting period (Dragesco

1995).

Figure 1 – Distribution of the pine marten (Martes martes) in Europe and Asia

Some topics of the pine marten’s ecology as diet (Nyholm 1970, Garzon et al.

1980, Reig and Jedrzejewski 1988, Jedrzejewski et al. 1993, Clevenger 1993, Pulliainen

& Ollinmaki 1996, Helldin 2000), home range (Zalewski et. al. 1995, Caryl 2008) and

habitat associations have been dissected over the years, but our perception of the

elements that limit marten density and distribution remain largely unexplained (Helldin

1998). The pine marten’s small size, somewhat evasive behavior and largely nocturnal

habits in secluded habitats led to that it has been less intensively studied than other

French carnivores as Meles meles (Henry 2004) and Lutra lutra (Defontaines 1999) but

a few studies have been performed in the late 80’s (Marchesi 1989).


Página 5

It is believed that the pine marten does not approach human homes, so any the

number of domestic poultry caught by it cannot be very remarkable. A study by the

National Office for Hunting and Wildlife (ONCFS) in cooperation with the Comité

Interprofessionnel de la volaille de Bresse and the Fédérations Départementales des

Chasseurs de Saône-et-Loire et l'Ain have shown that mustelids were responsible for

only 2% of chickens killed or injured by predators (Dragesco 1995).

The ecological role filled by the species is very important and is quite diverse. It

is mainly a predator, relying on small mammals for most of the year, but can

complement its diet with carrion and/or vegetable materials. The diet characteristics

such as what composes the diet and the percentage of each food item often change

according to habitat conditions. Populations react to the random cycles of prey by

drastically increasing their exploration of these prey items (Zalewski et. al. 1995). In

some regions, such as Poland, fruits may never be eaten (Zalewski et. al. 1995,

Clevenger 1993, Gurnell et. al. 1994) but in other areas in can fill over 30% of the

marten’s diet (Gurnell et. al. 1994). Discounting the seasonal boom of available rodents

and fruits, the pine marten’s diet is otherwise practically stable. Preferential foods

include voles, other small mammals, birds, insects, carrion, and frogs, reptiles, and

snails (Reig and Jedrzewski 1988). Since in the winter resources are lower than in other

times of the year, the pine marten stores its resources in arboreal cavities (Helldin and

Lindstrom 1995). In habitats other than forest, all foraging is completed on the ground

(Zalewski et al 1995, Helldin and Lindstrom 1995).

Therefore this species can cause a significant impact on the wildlife and thus the

habitat and structure of their communities. Pine marten often play an ecological role that

is disproportionately large compared to their numerical abundance. It is a species with

many ecological needs and that leads to a low density (Overskaug et. al. 1994). Since it

is a species that is almost on the top of the chain it has important roles in seed dispersal

and even in pest control (Caryl 2008).

Due to such impact in the structure of animal communities and due to its high

ecological needs we chose the pine marten to be our model in this study. Other reasons

were because this was a species belonging to the CERFE’s ―small carnivore project‖

(CERFE - Centre de Recherche et de Formation en Eco-éthologie) so there was


Página 6

previous work done with the species in this location, like scat collection, genetic

confirmation of scat provenience, a PhD regarding the pine marten behavioral changes

due to habitat fragmentation and the areas have also been used in studies to locate

refuge and breeding places of European marten and the elaboration of census and home

range of badger (Meles meles). Another reason we thought to be important for this

choice was that, since the marten is on the top of an ecological chain, if we found that

its food habits were affected by the forest fragmentation it could indicate that other

species in lower stages of the ecological chain were also affected by the fragmentation.

Finally due to the fact that this study may shows us how the local population subsists

against a high percentage of habitat fragmentation.

A meticulous understanding of pine marten ecology within fragmented forest is

necessary in order to formulate and execute informed decisions about how is the best

way to administer this habitat for the advantage of the pine marten.

Fulfilling the food needs of the species is one of the fundamental issues of

ecology. Several works have been made about the subject (Nyholm 1970, Reig and

Jedrzejewski 1988, Clevenger 1993, Pulliainen & Ollinmaki 1996, Helldin 2000 among

various others) but these works did not explore the habitat fragmentation subject which

we did.

This is because the food is the main factor regulating populations and therefore,

by studying the availability of food resources and how species take advantage of them

we can use this information to help preserve species. Therefore we shall test the null

hypothesis where diets from both sites are not different from one another.

Objectives

Knowing how important specific food items are for the 'fitness' of the species is

a major objective of studies on food habits (Livaitis 2000). Predators are animals that

usually live in low densities, making it even more relevant to meet their food needs,

especially for those who have higher energy requirements and depend on resources that

fluctuate spatially and temporally (Caryl 2008). The overall objectives of this study

were thus:


Página 7

To compare pine marten diet in a fragmented and a non-fragmented area,

regarding especially the pine marten’s basic resource - Rodents;

To understand the results obtained within the general theme of forest

management and conservation of pine marten;

To speculate about resource availability, regarding the results.


Página 8

Materials and Methods

Study site

Figure 2 - The region of France that comprised both study sites and their respective

location

The work was performed in the Ardennes region of France. The Ardennes is

located in the northeast of France bordering the south of Belgium (Figure 2) and its

climate is semi continental with long humid winters and big thermal amplitudes in the

summer. The region’s soil was formed by hercynian orogeny and it is friable and

siliceous.

In the area two study sites of 6400 ha each were chosen: an area of fragmented

forest and another of continuous forest. The first site (designated by NF – non-

fragmented forest) is located in the northern most part right in the border between

France and Belgium and the other in the southeast of the region 16 km east of Vouziers.

It is characterized by the presence of an old-growth forest composed mostly of Quercus

spp. and Fagus sylvatica and is located in the ―Massif ardennais‖ that extends through

Germany, Belgium and Luxembourg and varies in altitude between 150 and 700 meters;

the altitude range of the study site varies within 290 and 450 meters. Regarding the

second site (FF – fragmented forest), the area is generally composed of Quercus spp.,


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Fagus sylvatica and Picea abies with a wide range of shapes and sizes interspread by

agricultural terrains and small villages, and traversed by a few roads. It is located 60 km

apart from the first site and it is appreciably more plain leading to a lower height range

(160 to 220 meters).

There are several species of mammals present in both areas that include: badger

(Meles meles), ermine (Mustela erminea), pine marten (Martes martes), weasel

(Mustela nivalis), polecat (Putorius putorius), wild cat (Felis silvestris), fox (Vulpes

vulpes), wild boar (Sus scrofa), roe deer (Capreolus capreolus), and a large number of

rodent species.

Field sampling

The field work was performed in November/December of 2009 and March/April

of 2010. A transect of 2 km was performed in each of the 16 squares of 2 km2. In each

square, the transect was established covering woodland (Figure 3) because ―martens

are likely to concentrate their activity in woodland‖ (Balharry 1993). The classification

of ―woodland‖ was defined in ArcView 3.2 by a specialist with terrain knowledge. Each

Figure 3 - The fragmented forest area (Ardennes region near Vouziers) with the

woodland cover


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transect was made by 2 people to allow a more thorough coverage of the trail and

increase the probability of collecting a larger sample of scats.

For each scat found we registered the number of the transect, the date and the

exact location (UTM coordinates) in which it was collected. For a preliminary

assessment of the species originating the scat we looked at the size, shape, smell and

location on which we had found it. Pine marten’s scats are characterized for being

small, thin and having a twist in the tip (Velander 1983, Bright and Harris 1994, Bright

et al. 1995), they also have a very inconspicuous smell and they are usually located in

roads, dead wood and on top of rocks (Balharry et. al. 1996). Scats were further stored

in freezers to prevent the degradation of DNA.

They were then sent to the laboratory on the University of Lyon for species

identification using molecular markers.

No transects were performed on or in the first two days after rainy or snowy

events because the scats could have been washed or could have been covered by snow.

Diet analysis

The diet analysis occurred between November of 2010 and April 2011.

Encompassing all transects, 363 droppings were found and 139 were tested positive as

pine marten. Of the 139 scats, 104 were from the fragmented area and 35 from the non-

fragmented area. Only the scats that were positively identified as pine marten were

analyzed to assess the species feeding habits.

Each scat was placed in hot water and stirred to dissolve the mucilaginous

substances that involved it to provoke the breakdown of various not digested elements

(Zalewski 2004). The elements resulting from the previous procedure were filtered in a

0.5 mm sieve mesh.

The identification of remains was conducted using feathers for birds and chitin

shells for insects. The identification of mammal species was based in the microscopic

examination of teeth associated with the microscopic examination of cross-section of

hair (plate method) used to identify rodents by comparison to the characteristics (Debrot

et al. 1982, Erôme and Aulagnier 1982).


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Prey were categorized into five classes according to the remains found:

―Rodents‖, ―Birds‖, ―Seeds‖, ―Insects‖ and ―Other mammals‖. Other mammals were

put in separated category which included carrion (large or semi-large mammals) and

insectivores. The ―seeds‖ category does not include other type of vegetation remains.

Results were expressed in terms of relative occurrence by dividing the number of scats

in which the prey item occurred with the total number of scats analyzed.

The different categories of prey were classified regarding their

importance in the food spectrum using the criterion used by Skuratowick (1950 in

Farinha, 1995), ergo based on the percentages of occurrence:

PO> 20% basic resource;

PO ≤ 20% > 5% constant resource;

PO ≤ 5% > 1% complementary resource,

PO ≤ 1% occasional resource.

Diet comparison

In order to test if the pine marten diet is different between continuous and

fragmented areas, we used Fischer exact test due to the fact that the data did not fill the

assumption of the chi-square test (Krebs, 1999) that the sample size should be big

enough so that the expected count in each cell is greater than or equal to 5. It was made

in two steps: first to test using all food categories and to test only species included in the

―Rodents‖ category. Therefore our null hypothesis is that the diets of both sites are not

different from one another.

The second test was performed using the items Myodes glareolus, Apodemus

sylvaticus, Microtus sp. and Other Species. We also used the same method to test the

similarity in the ―Rodents‖ category between sites.

If our null hypothesis was not rejected we then did a third test in which we

ascertained if the proportion of ―Rodents‖ was homogenous, in other words if there

were any prey items favored by the pine marten. The analysis was then done through a

chi-square test. Data analysis was performed using the software STATISTICA 7.0.

To complement the earlier results and to evaluate the ampleness of the resource

exploitation, we did a statistical comparison of the food niche breadth of the pine


Página 12

marten using the Shannon-Wiener’s index of niche breadth (H’) (Krebs 1999).

Calculations were based on frequency of occurrences of the five food categories,

according to the following formula:

H’ = -Σ pi (log pi)

where ― H’ ‖ represents the diet breadth, and ―pi‖ is the proportion of the diet formed by

species ―i‖. The standardization of this index (J’) was done using the formula:

J’=H’/log n

where ―n‖ is the number of food types. Standardized values vary between 0 and 1, with

low values indicating a narrow niche breadth i.e. dietary specialism and high values

indicating wider niche breadth i.e. dietary generalism (Krebs 1999).

We then compared the calculated values of niche breadth for both sites using a t-

test:

T= (H’NF-H’FF)/S H’NF+H’FF

where ―s‖ is the niche breadth variance.

Finally we used the Pianka’s index (Pianka 1973 in Krebs 1999) to see how both

niches overlap. This index’s value varies between 0 and 1 and reaches its maximum

value when there is a total overlapping of the niches. We also did a complementary

calculation of the Pianka’s index without the ―Seeds‖ category since there were no

items of this category on the non-fragmented forest site’s scats.

Resource exploration

In order to know if the pine marten went outside of its preferential habitat with

the purpose of feeding, we performed the data analysis considering only the FF site. In

this analysis we separated the scats through bibliography consultation, according to the

items present that belonged to the ―Rodents‖ category. We created 2 groups using their


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habitat preferences as differentiator since we could pinpoint in which habitat the pine

marten had captured its prey. We joined the scats that contained Myodes glareolus,

Arvicola terrestris and Muscardinus avellanarius together in the woodland group and

Apodemus sylvaticus, Microtus sp., Mus musculus and Rattus sp. in the other habitats

group (non-woodland). The reason for the non-inclusion of the NF site was due to the

non-existence of fragmentation leading to the inability of using habitat as a

differentiator between groups.

Using the percentage of woodland cover in the FF site calculated with ArcView

3.2, we then ascertained the expected number of scats from each habitat (woodland and

non-woodland) if the habitat usage by pine martens would be equal throughout the

study site.

We did a chi-square test in order to compare the number of scats found in each

habitat type with the expected number.


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Results

Diet analysis

We found traces of 7 genera of rodents in the scats: Myodes, Apodemus,

Arvicola, Microtus, Rattus, Muscardinus and Mus. Since some of the genera had more

than one species present in the study area we joined the various species due to their

similar habitats and due to the fact that their distinction based only on hair and teeth is

very difficult. The species we joined were Microtus arvalis and Microtus agrestis in one

case and Rattus norvegicus and Rattus rattus in another (Table 1). The other mammals

FF site NF site Total (n)

Rodents n F.O. n F.O.

Myodes glareolus 35 0,25 9 0,23 44

Apodemus sylvaticus 19 0,13 3 0,08 22

Arvicola terrestris 3 0,02 2 0,05 5

Microtus sp. 8 0,06 4 0,10 12

Rattus sp. 2 0,01 1 0,03 3

Muscardinus avellanarius 1 0,01 0 0 1

Mus musculus 1 0,01 0 0 1

Rodents NI 0 0,00 1 0,03 1

Other mammals 1 0,01 2 0,05 3

Other prey

Birds 42 0,29 13 0,33 55

Seeds 16 0,11 0 0,00 16

Insects 15 0,10 4 0,10 19

Total 143 1 39 1

Table 1 – Composition of the food spectrum of pine marten, including number of

occurrences of each food item and its frequency of occurrence (F.O)


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category included one Ondatra zibeticus, one Capreolus capreolus and one Sorex sp..

Bird remains were comprised of mostly digested feathers but we also found

some scats with one undigested bird paw and a few claws. The remains were too

digested for us to identify families or genus except for undigested paw which belonged

to a member of the Passeriformes. With regard to the seeds we identified two species:

Rosa canina L. and Prunus avium. Lastly with insects we just noted the presence of

traces in a total of 19 scats always with other items in the scat.

The category ―Seeds‖, the fourth category regarding percentage of occurrence,

was only present in the FF site.

Diet comparison

The rodents’ category, heavily represented in the diet of the study area, was

classified according to the bibliography consulted (Jedrzeweski et. al. 1993, Caryl

2008). Since they represent a high percentage of occurrence, 49% in the fragmented

forest site and 52% in the continuous forest site (Figure 4), and following the

Skuratowicz criteria (1950, in Farinha, 1995) this prey category is considered a basic

resource (Table 2). Birds are also considered basic resources showing high percentages

of occurrence in the different sites, 29 and 33% respectively. These two categories

represent a total of 78 and 85%.

Figure 4 – The percentage of occurrence of each food category within both sites


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Table 2 – Classification of resources in the food spectrum.

NF site FF Site

Rodents Basic resource Basic resource

Other

Mammals

Complementary

resource

Complementary

resource

Birds Basic resource Basic resource

Insects Constant

resource

Constant

resource

Seeds - Constant

resource

The insects were the third most common identified category and occurred in,

approximately, 11% of all the scats analyzed showing very similar percentage of

occurrence values on both sites.

The ―Other mammals‖ category included carrion and comprised less than 2% of

the total of items found (3 in 179 total items found in scats).

Regarding the comparison of diets between sites the results of the Fischer exact

tests showed a p=0,175 with respect to all food categories and a p=0,373 when

considering only the ―Rodents‖ category showing that our null hypothesis of the

equality of the diets is true.

When testing our data for the null hypothesis of a similar proportion of each

element of the ―Rodents‖ category present in the scats we found clear differences

through a chi-square test (p < 0,001).

So in order to have a better understanding of the pine marten diet regarding one

of its basic resources we built a chart containing the data from both areas where every

species in the ―Rodents‖ category was discriminated by percentage of occurrence

(Figure 5).


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Figure 5 – Rodents found in pine marten scats

In the chart above, we can perceive that Myodes glareolus is evidently the most

consumed item with over half of the total number of rodent traces found in the scats.

Representing one fifth of the total number of items found in this category is Apodemus

sylvaticus.

The third most consumed item was Microtus sp. signaling that is a constant

presence in pine marten diet. The last four items in this category differed very little from

each other and comprised little above 10% of the total items (8 in 77).

The Shannon-Wiener index calculated to complement the previous results

showed values close to 1 in both areas (Table 3) which mean that the pine marten has a

wide niche breadth reinforcing the generalist character previously referred. The

difference between values calculated by a t-test is not significant (t=1,88, 0,10>p>0,05,

d.f..=17) .


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Table 3 – The Shannon-Wiener index in both sites

Standardized Shannon-

Wiener index (FF site)

Standardized

Shannon-Wiener index

(NF site)

0,775806522 0,847231544

The Pianka's index shows a very high food niche overlap between sampling

sites, with a value of almost 1 (complete food niche overlap) (Table 4).

Table 4 - Niche overlap between sampling sectors

Resource exploitation

The expected number of scats that contained prey items from the ―Rodents‖

category of habitat type (woodland forest and non-woodland forest), in accordance with

its habitat representativeness in the site, was of 14 scats for the woodland area (1267 ha

– 20%) and 55 (5133 ha – 80%) for the non-woodland area, for a total of 69 scats

containing ―Rodents‖ from the FF site. The real number of scats found that belonged to

each habitat was of 39 from the woodland area and 30 from the non-woodland area

(Table 5).

Table 5 – Real number of scats attributed to each habitat

Pianka’s Index

FF Site /NF Site

0,97857175

Woodland Non-woodland

Myodes glareolus 35 Apodemus sylvaticus 19

Arvicola terrestris 3 Microtus sp. 8

Muscardinus

avellanarius 1

Rattus sp. 2

Mus musculus 1

Total 39 Total 30


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The result from the chi-square test is presented in Table 6.

Table 6 – Chi-square test’s result between the expected and the real number of

scats from each habitat

Chi-square test

Value 56

p 0,000*


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Discussion

Since food is the main factor that regulates animal populations (Litvaitis 2000),

this study focused on the variation in pine marten diet, especially in the consumption of

rodent prey and how the human-induced changes in the habitat affects this crucial

element in pine marten ecology. This is crucial to understand due to the higher degree of

forest fragmentation in France and, especially in the Ardennes’ region.

The pine marten’s diet varies according to habitat type, altitude, season years,

the biogeography of prey species, the stability of ecosystems and prey availability

(Jedrzejewski et. al 1993, Zalewski 1995, Sidorovich 2005, Mergey 2007, Caryl 2008).

The availability of prey influences the ecology of the pine marten, regulating

their home range, habitat use and dispersal, being therefore considered a species

considered food-limited (Putman 2000, Proulx et. al. 2004). In Europe there is a great

variability of the pine marten diet, namely between marten population in Poland, France

and Scotland (Marchesi and Mermod 1989, Jedrzewski et. al. 1993, Caryl 2008).

Thus, at a time when it is known that increasing human activities on forest

systems are causing a major loss of available habitat, how the pine marten responds to

these variations have a high importance. Only then can we see if the species is adapting

to the modified habitat, and possibly prey availability changes or if these changes are, or

are likely to compromise viability of the species (survival and reproduction).

In these systems, it is known that rodents are more frequent in pine marten diet

and there are a greater number of rodent species consumed as well as a greater diversity

(including fruits, carrion and insects) in forest habitats that in other habitats (Lockie

1961, Jedrzejewski et. al. 1993). In addition, positive selection is known to the some

genus such as Microtus voles (Caryl 2008), Myodes and Apodemus (Marchesi and

Mermod 1989).

Habitat fragmentation

The habitat changes are reflecting in the pine marten diet. The results we

obtained show that the most consumed species (in percentage of occurrence) are those

that we knew were present in forest-type habitats but a noteworthy quantity of non-

forest species were also found in our analysis.


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The primary difference noted in the pine marten diet when comparing habitats is

the complete absence of seeds in scats collected in the continuous forest site, with all

remaining prey categories in similar values leading to a very analogous food niche size.

The two identified species of plants exist in somewhat different habitats: Rosa

canina is present on roadsides, shrubs and on the edge of woodland while Prunus avium

is usually located on the inside border of the forest and the edge of it (Blamey and Grey-

Wilson 1989). As the consumption of seeds was only found in the FF site and knowing

that one species is not present in woodland habitat and it other is usually present on the

edge of forest due to its ecological needs regarding sunlight (Blamey and Grey-Wilson

1989), we can say that this is a resource explored by the pine marten diet outside of its

natural habitat. Supporting this is the classification of this two species as non-present in

woodland habitats made by Marchesi and Mermod (1989). With this, and unlike other

works consider (Zalewski et. al. 1995, Sidorovich et. al. 2005, Kranz et. al. 2008), we

can claim that the pine marten feeds regularly outside of its habitat. The additional

needs of other food sources may indicate the quantity of rodent and bird prey is not

enough to fill the pine marten’s needs. This shows that, the pine martens, although

preferring the woodland habitat to hunt, adapt to a food constriction by exploring other

resources.

Taking into account the results that this work shows we see that Myodes

glareolus is the most consumed prey item within the rodents found. We can also

perceive that even when there is a high habitat fragmentation (almost 80%) the

preferred pine marten prey (Marchesi and Mermod 1989) still constitutes an important

part of its diet.

What we can also discuss about is the quantity of carrion that a marten has

access to in a vast area of forest although our sampling is not nearly big enough to

evidently state anything regarding this subject. We see that in the NF site, 2 scats clearly

contained carrion due to the prey’s size (Capreolus capreolus and Ondatra zibethicus)

and that in the FF site there was no carrion found in any of the 104 scats analyzed. If a

larger number of scats were analyzed from the NF site maybe carrion could appear in a

larger quantity of scats.

If habitat fragmentation leads to a low cover of forest, pine marten populations

must adapt or they will disappear as demonstrated by Proulx et al. (2004) in the British

Islands case. In this case they found denning sites not in the forest but in holes found in


Página 22

cliffs near the ocean and adapted their diet to a less-rodent type while they used their

foraging abilities on mollusk. In our study the results indicate that even though there is a

high percentage of habitat fragmentation the pine marten’s diet still remains similar to

that of other populations in the same region (Marchesi and Mermod 1989) and therefore

indicates an adapted pine marten species to habitat contraction.

There is increasing verification that mustelids suffer from intraguild predation

by bigger carnivores, which may possibly be prevalent in fragmented habitats (Brainerd

et al. 1994). But our results show that the pine marten is well adapted to habitat

fragmentation. This does not invalidate the fact that it may face a big threat as a result of

habitat loss: fragmentation effects (Bright 2000).

Habitat fragmentation has a negative effect on species that are considered to be

habitat-specialists such as the pine marten, and favorably discriminates those that can

take advantage of the anthropogenic conditions between human-tainted habitats (Bright

2000). The repercussion of the pine marten’s unwillingness to cross zones without cover

(Smith and Schaefer 2002) is that the amount and allocation of forest patches affects the

intensity with which they are explored (Hargis et al. 1999). Even big forest patches may

not be utilized if they are very parted from other appropriate habitat patches (Hargis et

al. 1999). This might explain the consumption of fruits from trees that our results show

in the FF site, since these two species are usually on the edge of woodland habitat.

Forests ought to therefore be managed at the landscape extent to guarantee that

connectivity linking forest patches is maintained, but thorough comprehension of

marten habitat requirements is needed with the purpose of achieving this.

Data limitations

The sample sizes used in dietary studies are usually too little to allow general

conclusions about the species’ diet to be reached (Balharry 1993a). Despite this, several dietary

studies were supported by small sample sizes of scats (Putman 2000, Caryl 2008). As sample

scat’s sizes are reduced, the value of variance increases to a high value, often becoming too big

for estimates to be meaningful (Carss & Parkinson 1996). In this work the amount of scats was


Página 23

better than in other studies (Caryl 2008) but it should be even greater especially in the NF site

where the number of scats is very little.

Since the number of scats found and analyzed from the continuous forest site

was considerably smaller than that of the fragmented forest site (a proportion of almost

5 to 1) this lead to a diet comparison far less robust then it should have been. This could

also lead to the absence of certain food items (rarest prey) in the pine marten’s diet in

that site. Although we don’t think that there is a higher density of pine marten in the

fragmented habitat, the difference observed is noteworthy and is probably the easiness

to found scats in a less dense type of forest. In fact, in the FF site, the denning and

resting places were easier to find. This resulted in a larger amount of scats collected in

the surroundings of such sites than in sites where we did not know such locations. Since

the continuous forest site had a dense forest cover these places were much harder to

encounter by chance. As an example one of the possible outcomes if we had found and

analyzed more scats from the NF site we could discern carrion as a major food source in

this site.

Regarding the ―insects‖ category one should note that there could be an

overestimation of these values due to them being a result of involuntary ingestion

(direct or through feeding on insectivore preys).

The orography of the NF site might also have played a particular role in this

difference between the scats found on each site because it was hilly, making it harder to

find scats in the steep slopes and under denser vegetation. Another factor was the

absence of fallen trees in this site which we found to be, as well as other authors

(Clevenger 1993, Bright and Harris 1995), a preferable place to defecate for the pine

martens.

One final limitation about our work had was the fact that we did not identify bird

species, like it was done in other similar works, that could give us information on

possible effects of habitat fragmentation in this essential resource in the diet of pine

marten.

Future implications for the preservation of pine marten habitat

The conclusions presented here are in accordance with those of Brainerd et al.

(1994) are likely to recommend that the pine marten is a species with a larger adaptable


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capacity than previously believed. While the presence of some structural components of

old-growth forests is essential for pine marten, a high proportion of old-growth forest in

the landscape is probably not (Brainerd et al. 1994). With the results of this work we

can say that the pine marten shows adaptation to highly fragmented habitats and that it

will use open areas that provide adequate structure as protective cover or food

resources. Indeed the structural conditions that non-forest habitats provide probably

allow the pine marten to inhabit areas without a significant level of forest habitat

(Balharry 1993a). Therefore the importance of transitional habitats, which offer pine

marten with essential physical structure cover, should not be undervalued. Consequently

since our FF site had 80% non-woodland cover we can perhaps speculate that the

agricultural fields and shrub canopy present on the site provided the protective cover

mentioned above in order for the pine martens to cross from one forest patch to another

without being totally exposed to predators. These structures are vital for linking larger

forest fragments, in which the pine martens rest, even though they cannot substitute

continuous extents of forest.

As for measures that could lead to the preservation of pine marten we can refer

the management of old-growth forests within young succession stages, since it could

favor generalist predators by rising the total of areas with grass-dominated foliage that

are fit habitat for their favored prey, Microtus voles and Myodes glareolus (Marchesi

and Mermod 1989, Caryl 2008) although this should not be done recurrently because

then we could be endangering the species. More specifically the old-growth forests

should be managed in order to become a more heterogeneous habitat which would

benefit the marten due the several prey species and denning and resting sites that would

likely appear that in a homogenous habitat.

One other measure is to study the landscape use by pine martens in a highly

fragmented habitat in order to maximize conservational efforts, regarding which patches

(regarding shape, size and characteristics) are essential to the species. It is important to

characterize those patches regarding the two most vital factors in pine marten

conservation: the existence of denning and resting sites and prey availability. Knowing

the ecological needs of the populations is taking one step further to every species’

conservation.


Página 25

Concluding remarks

Throughout the duration of this study it became evident that public opinion

regarding the pine marten in France was generally of two natures: absent or negative.

The species was described as almost a ―pest‖ consuming resources that, by public

opinion, should be consumed by other game species. These opinions are indefensible,

stressing the public’s ignorance surrounding marten’s dietary habits and population

densities.

Since public perception is erratic, it can be changed through positive publicity

and education. News stories about the potential for pine marten to act as implements of

biological control, preferentially preying upon rodent species should be a good way to

change the public’s view of the pine marten. Another way of doing this is exposing the

benefits of the species regarding game species. This would be a key move on

countryside regions which are the majority of people viewing the pine marten in a

negative fashion. Thankfully this will improve the public-researchers relation for a more

cordial one allowing a more efficient and focused work with the public’s

encouragement. A good example of this is the pine marten’s conservation case in

Scotland where the species was brought back from a state of nearly extinct and now its

numbers have increased as well as its distribution. This was accomplished by protective

legislation and land management only possible due to a positive public perception

regarding the species’ conservation.


Página 26

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